11/11/2021- 1:00 p.m.
Robot Rush: US companies splurge record $1.48bn on tech workers as demand surges
In the first three quarters of 2021 American companies ordered a staggering 29k robots to fill vacancies once held by humans, a 37% rise on the same period last year, marking the biggest uptake ever.
Many industries have reported difficulties luring people back to fill roles since the pandemic began, while for the first time ever other industries surpassed the traditionally robot-reliant automaking sector.
“Businesses just can’t find the people they need – that’s why they’re racing to automate,” said the president of the Association for Advancing Automation, adding: “It’s not that automotive is slowing down – auto is up,” -but other sectors – from metals to food manufacturers – are growing even faster.
